1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a diver's door for use on inflatable boats in order to provide access to the boat.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Numerous examples of inflatable boats are known in the art. Several inflatable boats are formed from separable sections such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,159,551 (Iwai). This separable inflatable boat is formed from a covering having a hollow peripheral casing and a flat deck and a floatable member accommodated in the casing. The floatable member includes a plurality of floatable bags which are separably interconnected by slide fasteners and can be conveniently carried separately from the covering. This boat, however, has no provision for removing a section of the boat during use in order to improve diver access thereto.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,931,655 (Luscombe) discloses an inflatable boat of sectional construction including a bow section, an intermediate section and a stern section which are releasably secured together. Each section includes inflatable side members that are generally rectangular and which form the sides of the boat. Inflatable transverse members of each section are secured together and serve as seats for the boat. The sections may be readily disconnected from each other and each section may then serve as a small buoyant craft. Again, this boat has no provision for removing a portion of the side wall in order to improve diver access but rather is separable into three distinct boats.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,449,473 (McCrory et al.) discloses an inflatable boat having parallel side sponsors joined by a floor and having a rigid keelson member including a demountable transom capable of supporting an outboard motor. The transom may be removed from the boat for storage but no provision is made for removal of the transom from the boat during use.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,170,738 (Patten) discloses an inflatable vessel for marine divers having an opening in the fabric bottom or deck to enable divers to board the vessel from the water through the opening without swamping the vessel. The advantage of this particular boat is that no rigid framework is required. However, this boat requires that the deck or bottom be suspended above the water line in order to prevent flooding of the interior of the boat when the access opening is opened.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,170,738 also mentions that existing vehicles available for use in similar operations may be partially rigid with an inflatable tube supporting a rigid frame which forms a well for entry. Such boats suffer from the disadvantage, however, that the entry well cannot be closed and thus typically provides a means for ingress of water to the boat through the well during use.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,781,933 (Soter) discloses a one-man inflatable life raft with an inflatable tube peripherally bounding an occupant receiving space having a flexible floor member. The boat includes a zippered opening in the floor to be used for entry thus avoiding the necessity of climbing over the peripheral tube and facilitating the use of a constant diameter tube as opposed to conventional tubes that are tapered at one end to facilitate boarding over the side. Again, this boat suffers from the disadvantage that water will enter the boat when the zippered opening in the floor is opened thereby swamping the boat or at least wetting the contents of the boat.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,498,413 (Cochran) discloses a rigid inflatable boat including multiple inflatable bladders defining a ring around the hull generally at or above the water line. The inflatable bladders are connected to the hull and to each other in a manner facilitating rapid mounting and demounting and easy repair thereof. This is accomplished by a positioning structure formed in the hull for positioning each bladder with respect to the hull and a holding structure to releaseably hold each bladder to the hull when the bladder is inflated while allowing ready demounting when the bladder is deflated. The bladders may be provided with interlocking end structures to stabilize the positions of the bladders with respect to each other and the hull.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,498,413 does not contemplate removal of one or more sections of the boat during use in order to facilitate entry or exit of a diver to or from the boat but rather is designed solely for the purpose of facilitating disassembly of the boat for repair or replacement of one or more of the inflatable bladders.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an inflatable boat which provides for easy access to the boat by a diver while at the same time does not unduly expose the interior of the boat to the water.
Thus, it is the primary object of the present invention to provide an inflatable boat including a means for providing access to the boat for a diver while at the same time not exposing the boat to ingress of water.
This and other objects of the present invention will be apparent from the summary and detailed descriptions which follow.